The partnership with the did deutsch-institut included a 4-week course during which I would post a blog every day on a site set up specifically for the project: My Berlin Story. Daily posts featured content from the German language course, as well as life in Berlin—tracking my progress in learning the German language.

Social Media

All posts were shared across @travelsofadam social media (Twitter and Facebook), as well as a vast majority through the Latitude Travel @gostudywork social media (Twitter and Facebook). HostelBookers, as a sponsor, promoted occasional posts about life and travel in Berlin (such as Berlin hotels and Berlin food for travelers on the MyBerlinStory website) through social media. Additionally, the project was also promoted following the completion of the language course through the @I_amGermany rotation curation account.

Published posts

On MyBerlinStory.com, 38 blog posts were published before, during and after the language course. In the first 2.5 months of the blog’s existence, the site received over 4,500 views. In the first month of the blog’s existence, during the language course promotion, the MyBerlinStory blog received 23 subscribers. A sidebar advertisement on travelsofadam.com was significant in driving targeted traffic from the main travel blog, to the Berlin-specific blog.

In addition to the daily coverage on social media and the MyBerlinStory.com blog, posts were also published on travelsofadam.com to reach over 800 RSS & e-mail subscribers:

Reader engagement and feedback

I received numerous e-mails and feedback from the project, including direct questions about my language school and about living in Berlin, in addition to regular queries about travel & tourism in Berlin. Here are a sample from direct e-mails I received.

From people amused and interested in the project…

As an ancient teacher for French I am very much amused by your efforts to learning German. Let me suggest you Mark Twains remarks about the awful German language. The way he writes about it is very funny but also very true. I hope you’ll enjoy reading and still go on improving your German skills. — R.B. (native Berliner)

Specific queries related to the language school:

What course book are you working from, I’m learning German and would like to get a book like that. — JW

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I am seriously considering having Berlin be my second stop [on a 3-month trip through Europe]. If Berlin does end up being my second stop, I would certainly enroll in a month-long German course at the DID over there. I would therefore appreciate any feedback you could give me at this point regarding the DID. They seem to have a pretty robust accommodation service compared the Goethe Institute. From reading your blog, I gather that you probably do not live in DID organized housing, but would appreciate any feedback that you may have heard regarding DID organized host family stays as well as the DID organized studio apartments (the ones that cost around 1000 euros per month). I am somewhat of a “study abroad” veteran having stayed with host families in France, Germany, and Spain in the past, but it’s been a while since I, like an idiot, gave up that lifestyle. — B.D.

Specific queries about accommodation in Berlin

Hi there, I follow your Hipster blog and have now been coaxed (by you) to start reading your Berlin Story. I am interested in doing something similar. I lived for a couple of months in Berlin in 2011, but would love to dedicate a year in doing something more worthwhile than seeing the sites. We’re (husband and me) are looking to head out to Berlin in 3 years time for a year after he’s completed his Psychotherapy training in the UK. My question is where do look and what is the process of renting an apartment in Berlin. I don’t have the budget to stay in a hotel for the duration (nor have any inclination to do so) and want to have something fairly central, perhaps a studio or one bedroom unit. Can you recommend any resources? websites etc that could lead me in the right direction. I want to go to a language school too, my German is okay for ordering beer but that’s where it peaks! So I am following your blog with interest. How many weeks have you signed up for? — J.W.

SEO and search-traffic statistics

A major benefit for companies working with blogs is the longevity of posts. This blog strives to publish quality content that is easy to find on the web. Articles posted here often rank for their respective keywords which are selected based on the sponsor’s goals. Learn more about working with this travel blog in the media & press kit.

City Guides

Who is Adam?

In 2010 I quit my job as a graphic designer in Boston and went on a trip around the world. Since 2011 I’ve been living in Berlin—Europe’s most hipster city, and probably the best place in the world.

Travels of Adam is my blog, a personal way to share my travel tips. You’ll find gay travel stories, nightlife tips, photos and all-too-personal stories from my travel adventures around the world. To learn more about how this life as a full-time traveler began, read how Iceland changed my life.